Prelios spins off real estate unit

Prelios, a Milan-based asset management firm, is spinning off its real estate investment unit from its asset and fund management business lines, according to a statement on the firm’s website.

Prelios, which was formerly Pirelli Real Estate, has approximately 500 professionals managing around €5.4 billion ($5.9 billion), including €5.2 billion ($5.7 billion) of real estate assets, according to the firm’s website. Approximately 79 percent of the firm’s real estate assets are located in Italy.

The spin-off will move Prelios’ real estate investments and co-investments to a separate special purpose vehicle named Centauro. Shareholders of Centauro will include UniCredit, Intesa Sanpaolo, Pirelli and Prelios, which will subsequently sell down its stake.

The spin-off “pursues the company goal to focus on service activities, clearly aiming at developing the asset management and service business, for the purpose of antic